- How the exam is done
- How to prepare
- 1. What medications to avoid
- 2. How should the food be
- Possible risks and contraindications
To prepare for myocardial scintigraphy, also called myocardial perfusion scintigraphy or myocardial scintigraphy with mibi, it is advisable to avoid some foods such as coffee and bananas and suspend, as instructed by your doctor, beta-blocking medications (atenolol, propranolol, metoprolol, bisoprolol), 1 or 2 days before the procedure. In patients who cannot discontinue these medications, there is a method of associating a medication with the treadmill.
Myocardial scintigraphy has an average price between 1200 and 1400 reais and serves to assess the blood flow in the arteries of the heart, being used to assess the presence of infarction in patients with chest pain, at high risk of having heart problems or in cases heart failure, heart transplant and heart valve disease.
Check out the 12 symptoms that can indicate heart problems.
How the exam is done
At the beginning, the person receives an injection with a radioactive substance, necessary to form images in the device, which assesses how the blood is reaching the heart. Then, you should drink about 3 glasses of water, eat and take a light walk, to help the substance to accumulate in the heart region, improving the images obtained in the exam.
The exam consists of two steps:
- Rest phase: the person takes the images on a machine, sitting or lying down; Stress phase: the images are taken after the heart stress that can be performed with the person during the exercise, most of the time, on the treadmill, or with the use of a medication that simulates that the heart is exercising.
In this last phase, there is also the combined modality, where there is a combination of medication and physical effort. The decision on how this stress phase will be performed must be made by the doctor who performs the exam, after a previous evaluation of the patient.
The evaluation of the heart starts 30 to 90 minutes after the injection with the radioactive substance, and images are made through a device that rotates around the patient's abdomen for about 5 minutes.
Often, the exam is done both at rest and under stress, so it may take two days to do the exam. But if they are done on the same day, the examination usually starts at the resting stage.
How to prepare
Preparing for the exam involves taking care of medication and food:
1. What medications to avoid
You should talk to the doctor to receive guidance, as you should avoid using, for 48 hours, high blood pressure medications, such as Verapamil and Diltiazem and beta-blockers that end up decreasing heart rate, and for asthma and bronchitis, such as Aminophylline..
In addition, drugs to improve circulation based on nitrates, such as Isosorbide and Monocordil, should be suspended in the 12 hours prior to the examination, if the doctor considers that there will be more benefit than risk in the suspension.
2. How should the food be
In the 24 hours prior to the exam, you should avoid ingesting:
- Coffee; Decaffeinated coffee; Teas; Chocolate or chocolate food; Banana; Soft drinks.
In addition, you should also avoid any other foods or medications that contain caffeine, alcoholic beverages and carbonated drinks.
Although some doctors may indicate fasting before the exam, most advise a light meal 2 hours before the scintigraphy.
Possible risks and contraindications
The risks of myocardial scintigraphy are more expected in myocardial scintigraphy with pharmacological stress because of the side effects of the medication, which can be:
- Feeling of heat in the head; Chest pain; Migraine; Dizziness; Decreased blood pressure; Shortness of breath; Nausea.
However, myocardial scintigraphy usually does not cause health consequences and it is not necessary to stay in the hospital.
In addition, it is important to remember that myocardial scintigraphy is contraindicated in women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
